Headline News

27, September 2016

Gabon: Ali Bongo will never walk alone ⁰

Despite the controversy surrounding his narrow victory in the presidential elections that held on the 27th of August 2016, Cameroon-info.net has reported that Ali Bongo Ondimba was not totally abandoned by his counterparts today in Libreville. Four African heads of state were in the Gabonese capital for the inaugural event. They were Mohamadou Issoufou of Niger, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita of Mali, Manuel Pinto da Costa of Sao Tome and Principe, Faure Gnassingbe of Togo.

Morocco, Senegal, Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and the Central African Republic were each represented by their Prime Ministers. Several other countries also answered present through senior members of the Government and their diplomats. This was the case of Cameroon and its Minister of State Justice and Keeper of the Seal, Laurent Esso who made the trip.

European countries were not invited for the ceremony which finally held in a good atmosphere at the Palais du bord de mer.

By Rita Akana

27, September 2016

The Cameroonian House of Senate has reached its point of high comedy ⁰

The Cameroonian Senate has indeed reached its point of high comedy. We of the Cameroon Concord News Group are not really exaggerating when we say these. Our senators regularly appear completely unprepared for questions concerning the day-to-day running of the country. With age telling on them, they are very sluggish, tongue-tied and practically weak. For lack of a better word, the Cameroonian so called senators are an embarrassment for all concerned.

Several elected officials in Cameroon have died, but they have not been replaced as provided by law. Recently, Senator Delphine Medjo passed away raising once again the issue that calls into question the functioning of the Senate. Our senators have treated Cameroonians to a risible array of hyperbolic, ill-informed and to be sure, gotcha questions and answer sessions of narrow parochial concerns that have almost nothing to do with what the great Barrister Bernard Muna noted as the “Challenges of the 21^st Century” facing the nation.

Ever since its creation not too long ago, the senate members have been dying like flies. Youssoufa Dawa in October 2015, Steven Jikong Yérima in November 2014, Francis Nkwain in October 2014, Fon Fontem Njifua Lucas in April 2014 and Illiassou Ntieche Mouchili, who even travelled to the land of his ancestors before the maiden session of the Senate. None has been replaced. So, it is evidently clear that the Senate is operating illegally.

Veteran Cameroonian journalist, Chief Bisong Etahoben had opined that there was no need writing these laws if we do not want to respect them. The provisions of Article 219 of the Electoral Code, which provides in Article 1 that in case of death of an elected senator and in accordance with provisions of Article 155, the procedure for by-elections in the constituency will prevail has hardly been respected.

Paragraph 3 of the same section also specifies that in case of death of an appointed senator, a new senator is appointed to complete the term, at the behest of the President of the Republic. Yet for now, none of these provisions has been respected. The nation is governed from a hotel room in Swiss.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

27, September 2016

US presidential debate: Trump bragged, lied, bullied, Clinton stole the show ⁰

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton have both performed predictably at their first presidential debate, an American political analyst and activist says. “Trump was Trump. Clinton was Clinton. He bragged. He lied. He bullied,” Myles Hoenig, a Green Party candidate for Congress, told Press TV on Tuesday.

The analyst said former secretary of state Clinton was prepared. “She evaded questions regarding the emails. She hid her own history as she claimed she cared for workers, families, others.” “In the end, she stole Green Party’s Jill Stein’s usual closing line, ‘…like your life depends on it, because it does,” he stated.

During the debate at Hofstra University in Hampstead, New York, Trump attacked Clinton over her use of a private email server as secretary of state and she criticized him for not releasing his tax history. “I’m not going to make any excuses, it was a mistake,” Clinton said referring to her use of private email.
She also said Trump is “trying to hide” his tax history, adding, “it must be something really important, even terrible.” Trump reacted by saying, “I will release my tax returns against my lawyer’s wishes when she releases her 33,000 emails that have been deleted.”

Green Party presidential nominee Stein and Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson were not invited to participate in the debate by the Commission on Presidential Debates. The commission said the two candidates had failed to garner the 15 percent support in five polls required to qualify for the debate. But Stein rejected the standards set by the commission and staged her own live stream Q&A session on social media on Monday evening from outside the presidential debate venue in New York.

Presstv

27, September 2016

Cameroon: 2016-2017 University academic year begins without the President Biya laptops ⁰

The academic year in Cameroon has effectively started today Tuesday, September 27, 2016. Students from eight state universities and higher institutions are once again occupying the amphitheatres in Bamenda (North West), Buea (South West), Douala (Littoral), Dschang (West), Maroua (Far North) Ngaoundéré (Adamawa), Yaoundé I and II (Centre).

According to the latest figures from the Ministry of Higher Education, more than 500 000 students have enrolled in the eight (8) state universities and private higher institutions in Cameroon for the academic year 2016/2017 and none has received any laptop from the Biya led government. Cameroon Concord News will be updating you on the laptops promised the students by President Biya.

By Sona Peter

27, September 2016

Transport Minister Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o may be on his way out!!! ⁰

A war of words has reportedly erupted between Transport Minister, Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o and his deputy, Mefiro Oumarou, who also moonlights as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cameroon Airlines Corporation (Camair-Co). The all-powerful Minister of Transport sent a letter to his collaborator on August the 30th 2016 in which he requested Mefiro Oumarou to explain what he said on the airwaves of the state owned radio and television on two different programs Weekly News and Inside the Presidency.

Mebe Ngo’o, we learned, was also not happy with pronouncements made by his assistant and had to go on the radio program Dimanche Midi to debunk the rantings of his subordinate that challenged the Camair Co recovery plan developed by the manufacturer Boeing. The situation seems to be developing a kind of tug-of-war in the ministry as both men have all granted two interviews each on the matter. National public opinion has witnessed an unprecedented bewildering spectacle, featuring the Minister of Transport and his deputy painting a confusing and declining transport policy.

Cameroon Concord News understands, Minister Mebe Ngo’o is no longer feared and respected by the ruling Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo hegemony. The Transport Minister even asked to meet Mefiro Oumarou on Monday, August 29, 2016. But his deputy left Cameroon on Saturday, August 27, 2016, to enjoy his holiday without having the politeness and courtesy to inform his boss. The Minister observed that Mefiro Oumarou has lost sight of his roles as Minister Delegate to the Minister of Transport and Board member of Camair-Co and plans to remind the Mefiro Oumarou that he remains under the authority of the Minister.

By Rita Akana

27, September 2016

Iranian Parliamentary Speakers says the fight against terrorism is not possible through statements ⁰

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has held some regional countries and world powers liable for the ongoing crisis in Syria, saying terrorism must be fought in practice and on the ground and not on paper. “The fight against terrorism will not be possible through statements and genuine measures must be carried out in practice,” Larijani said in a meeting with Syrian Parliament Speaker Hadiya Khalaf Abbas in Tehran on Monday. Pointing to Riyadh’s support for militants wreaking havoc in Syria, he added, “Unfortunately, Saudi Arabia has created many problems in the region and is not behaving correctly.”

He said the Islamic Republic has always contended that the crisis in Syria can be solved through political approaches and Syrian-Syrian negotiations. Larijani stressed the importance of reinforcing unity among Muslim nations to solve problems in the Muslim world and said, “Only major and colonial powers benefit from the existing divisions among Muslim states to serve their own interests.”
The top Iranian parliamentarian emphasized that Syria is on the frontline of the campaign against terrorism and Zionism and hailed the “very judicious” bids by the Syrian government and President Bashar al-Assad in particular in finding diplomatic solutions to the crisis in the country.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran’s policy is [based on] fighting terrorism and restoring security in the region,” Larijani pointed out. Pointing to “cordial and historical” relations between Tehran and Damascus, the Iranian parliament speaker said, “Iran and Syria, as two important and major countries in the region and the Muslim world which enjoy rich civilizations and history, have profound and strategic ties.”

The Syrian parliament speaker, for her part, said the Israeli regime is supporting the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham militant group, formerly known as al-Nusra Front, in the southwestern city of Quneitra. She added that the US recent airstrikes against the Syrian army indicated Washington’s support for terrorism and said the United States is pursuing double-standard policies in Syria.

Khalaf Abbas praised Iran’s full support for her country and expressed hope the Syrian people would achieve a final victory over terrorists soon. The Syrian parliament speaker arrived in Tehran on Monday at the invitation of her Iranian counterpart, Ali Larijani, to hold talks with senior Iranian officials. Earlier in the day, she attended a joint press conference with Larijani and held talks with Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict. Back in 2014, the UN said it would no more update its death toll for Syria because it could not verify the figures that it received from various sources.

A week-long truce, brokered by Russia and the US, came to an end across Syria on September 19. Damascus refused to extend the deal after its military base was hit by US-led airstrikes near the eastern city of Dayr al-Zawr in violation of the agreement. In recent months, the Takfiri militants have suffered major setbacks as the Syrian army has managed to liberate several areas.

26, September 2016

Gabon: Ali Bongo inauguration to be held tomorrow in Libreville ⁰

The inauguration of the re-elected President of Gabon, Ali Bongo will be held on Tuesday in Libreville. Ali Bongo’s victory in the presidential election of August 27 has been confirmed by the Constitutional Court after a recount of polling station by polling station overseen by representatives of the African Union.
Bongo will be invested for second seven-year term as head of Gabon at a ceremony whose details have still not been made public.
The losing candidate Jean Ping, who has not accepted defeat nor responded positively to Ali Bongo calls for dialogue and peace, received on Monday afternoon at his Libreville residence, diplomats accredited in Gabon. They were bearers of peace and dialogue messages from the victorious camp. The international community had already advised Jean Ping and his camp to use constitutional remedies to challenge the defeat rather than calling for violence.

By Chi Prudence Asong

26, September 2016

US: Bernie Sanders to campaign along with Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire ⁰

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is set to campaign along with his former rival, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, in the US state of New Hampshire in the run-up to 2016 presidential election.The Clinton campaign made the announcement on Sunday as the former US secretary of state was preparing for the first national debate before the November 8 Election Day with her rival, GOP nominee Donald Trump. Sanders will appear on the stage alongside Clinton at the University of New Hampshire Field House on Wednesday, two days after the first presidential debate, to talk about the issue of college affordability to American students.

“Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will campaign together in New Hampshire to discuss their shared belief that cost should not be a barrier for anyone who chooses to go to college, and student debt should not hold Americans back after they leave school,” the Clinton campaign said in a statement. “That includes enabling all students with family income up to $125,000 to attend an in-state public college or university tuition-free, covering more than 80 percent of all families.”

On July 12, Clinton and Sanders joined forces at Portsmouth High School, where he endorsed her ahead of the Democratic National Convention. That was the last time the two politicians appeared together in public. Sanders had earlier managed to beat the former New York senator in the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire presidential primary by a landslide margin of 60 percent to 38 percent. As a presidential candidate, the Vermont senator vowed to “fight to make sure that every American who studies hard in school can go to college regardless of how much money their parents make and without going deeply into debt.”

Presstv

26, September 2016

Exiled South Sudan leader calls for war against the government ⁰

South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader has called for war against the government, ending an internationally-backed peace deal. Former vice president Riek Machar said on Sunday that he will “wage a popular armed resistance against the authoritarian and fascist regime of President Salva Kiir in order to bring peace, freedom, democracy and the rule of law in the country.”

Machar fled to Khartoum after clashes broke out between his supporters and Kiir’s in the South Sudanese capital Juba in July. He added that the international community should “declare the regime in Juba as a rogue government and a spoiler of peace that is threatening regional and international peace and security.”

The announcement is Machar’s first since the fighting broke out. At the time, he referred to the clashes as an “assassination attempt.”

Members of the South Sudanese army (SPLA) patrol the half-emptied village of Leer, South Sudan, on February 3, 2016.

South Sudan has witnessed a new wave of conflict since July 8, when gunfire erupted near the state house in Juba as Kiir and then vice president Machar were holding a meeting. More than 300 people were killed in the clashes. The country gained independence from Sudan in 2011. It has been going through turmoil ever since.

A bloody civil war in South Sudan began in December 2013, when Kiir accused his former deputy Machar of plotting a coup against him. The two parties then got involved in a cycle of retaliatory killings that have split the impoverished country along ethnic lines.

Former Vice President of South Sudan Riek Machar (L), and President Salva Kiir (R), sit for an official photo with the 30 members of the new cabinet of the Transitional Government at the Cabinet Affairs Ministry, in Juba on April 29, 2016.

The two sides eventually signed an agreement in August last year to bring the conflict to an end. As part of the deal, Machar returned to Juba in April to take up the post of vice president in a national unity government. Despite the peace deal, battles persist across the African state.

Presstv

25, September 2016

4 Chadian soldiers, 7 Boko Haram militants killed in cross-border clashes ⁰

At least four Chadian soldiers and seven militants from the Nigeria-based Takfiri group Boko Haram have been killed in cross-border clashes in the volatile Lake Chad region. A security source said Sunday that the clashes erupted a day earlier after Boko Haram militants launched a raid from Nigeria on a Chadian military post near the border with Niger.

“Around 8:00 pm (1900 GMT) on Saturday night, Boko Haram members attacked the Djoroye border post near the Niger border in the Lake Chad region killing four of our soldiers,” said the sources, adding, “The Chadian army killed seven Boko Haram fighters”. There was no official confirmation from the Chadian military of the attack.

Chad is a member of a multinational task force combating Boko Haram across its border with Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon. The force has been created with the aim of preventing a spillover of the militancy to those countries from Nigeria. Boko Haram militants launched a similar cross-border raid on members of the Niger army two weeks ago. Officials in Niger said five soldiers and 30 militants were killed in the clashes that ensued on September 14.

More than 20,000 people, mostly Nigerians, have been killed since Boko Haram began waging a militancy in northern Nigeria in 2009. The group has pledged allegiance to Daesh, a Takfiri terrorist group mainly operating in the Middle East.

Presstv